Gay rugby star Gareth Thomas has urged Premier League footballers to lead the way in tackling homophobia in sport - starting this weekend.

Gay rights charity Stonewall and bookmaker Paddy Power have sent rainbow laces to all 92 professional clubs in England and Wales, and the 42 in Scotland, asking players to lace their boots with them during fixtures as part of its Right Behind Gay Footballers campaign.

Thomas said: “If I screw up in the course of the game, I’ll take whatever you’ve got because I deserve it, but I don’t deserve 80 minutes of abuse because I’m gay.”

He retired from rugby union in 2011, after a glittering career that saw him lead Wales to a Grand Slam in 2005, their first since 1978.

Thomas won 100 caps for Wales, scored 40 tries for his country and took over the British Lions captaincy when Brian O'Driscoll was injured in New Zealand in 2005.

He later made a brief comeback in rugby league, again representing his country, before finally hanging up his boots in both codes in 2012.

Star quality: Gareth Thomas with Hollywood actor Mickey Rourke, who is to star in a film about the rugby player's life

A film about his life courageous decision to come out as gay is being made, starring Hollywood actor Mickey Rourke.

Yet despite his example, there are still no known openly gay footballers in the English and Scottish professional leagues.

Former Leeds and United States winger Robbie Rogers retired in February, announcing his sexuality and saying he couldn’t continue his career as a result - only to later reverse his decision and sign for LA Galaxy.

Before Rogers’ revelation, only two high-profile footballers had publicly said they were gay.

Former England Under-21 star Justin Fashanu was the first professional footballer in Britain to come out, in 1990, before he took his own life eight years later, aged 37.

Swedish lower league player Anton Hysen also came out in 2011.

However, despite receiving the backing of rugby hero Thomas and high-profile footballers like Joey Barton, campaign group 'Football v Homophobia' has withdrawn its support for the project after claiming its slogan - Right Behind Gay Footballers - is "sexualised innuendo".